Gate closer



Dec. 24, 1935. N s HARTER 2,025,238

GATE CLOSER Filed March 8, 1954.

2 J5 J0 v U a 1 g op I. I k 7 IO- Patented Dec. 24, 1935 PATENT OFFICE GATE CLOSER Noah S. Harter, Waukegan, Ill., assignor to Cyclone Fence Company,

ration of Illinois Application March 8,

2 Claims.

The invention relates to closer means and has reference more particularly to a gate closer of improved construction and which can be economically manufactured.

An object of the invention is to provide a device for closing gates and the like which can be applied to gates now in use and which will not require alteration or any addition to the gate structure. The device of the invention may be used on all types of metal frame wire-mesh gates and can be readily adjusted to adapt the closer means to the particular direction of movement of the gate in opening and closing.

Another object of the invention is to provide a gate closer having a rotatable pivot member forming one of the hinges for the gate and which will be operative to adjust the position of the closer means relative to the gate, making the device adaptable to gates of varying sizes and weights.

With these and various other objects in view, the invention may consist of certain novel features of construction and operation as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the specification, drawing and claims appended hereto.

In the drawing which illustrates an embodiment of the device and wherein like reference characters are used to designate like parts Figure 1 is an elevational view showing a preferred type of gate equipped with the closer means of the invention;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary elevational view, parts being shown in section, of the closer means as applied to the gate of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of Figure 2; and

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 2 but showing the closer means of the invention in reversed position for closing a gate having swinging movement in a direction opposite to that of the gate of Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a section taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing, particularly Figure 1, the invention is shown as applied to a conventional type of metal frame wire-mesh gate Ill suitably supported for swin in movement by the post II, the upper portion of the gate being supported by hinge l2 and the lower portion by the hinge l3 which forms a part of the closer of the invention. The gate is held locked in closed position by the latch 14 suitably secured to the fence Waukegan, 111., a corpo- 1934, Serial No. 714,714

post l5 and by the keeper l6 carried by the gate. Figure 6 shows the latch provided with a recess for receiving the keeper l6 and a projecting lug I! which forms a shoulder adjacent the recess to limit the swinging movement of the gate in one 5 direction.

The gate closer includes a support in the form of members I8 and 2!! each having a circular contour for contact with the exterior of the post H and held in position on the respective sides of the 10 post by the bolts 2!. Member 29 has a portion 22 formed integral therewith and provided with a bore for receiving the pivot stud 23 having a length to project a distance on both sides of the portion 22. The upward projecting end of the 15 pivot stud provides the lower hinge of the gate, supporting the same by means of the hinge bracket 24 which is rigidly secured to the metal frame of the gate and has pivotal movement on the upper end of the stud. The downwardly projecting 20 end of the stud 23 is slotted at 25 for the greater portion of its length and mounts the closer means of the invention. The intermediate portion of stud 23 is formed of hexagonal or octagonal shape, providing a plurality of flat faces 26 which 25 when engaged by the set screw 21, as shown in Figure 3, hold the stud in adjusted rotated position. The utility of this adjustment will be more fully understood as the description of the device proceeds.

The slotted end of the pivot stud receives an upper collar 28 and a lower collar 29 having located between them the coil spring 30 and which collars are held in proper spaced relation on the stud by a sleeve 3|. The coil spring has an end 35 32, Figure 4, bent for location in the slot 25 and has its opposite end bent to form a hook 33, Figure 3, for engagement with the exterior of the frame of the gate. The collar 29 is slotted at 34 to receive the bent end 32 of the coil spring and permits the end convolution of the same to rest on the collar. Likewise the upper collar 28 is slotted at 35, Figure 5, for receiving the bent end 32 of the coil spring when the same is reversed to adapt the closer to gates having swinging movement in 45 a direction opposite to the gate of Figure 2. Also the sleeve is provided with a slot 36 to accommodate the end of the coil spring forming the hook 33. The cotter pin 3'! is located in aligned openings in the slotted end of the pivot stud and holds 50 the collars and coil spring in operative relation.

To apply the present device to gate closers the lower hinge is removed and the gate closer is substituted therefor, being attached to the post by the support, including the members l8 and 20.

one direction or the other.

The upper end of the pivot stud 23 provides the lower hinge for the gate and the coil spring 30 forms the closer means in that one end is fixed to the pivot stud while the other end has engagement with the frame of the gate to resist movement of the same when the gate swings in a direction to wind up the coil spring, that is, in a direction to open, the energy being expended in causing movement of the gate in a direction to close. If the tension of the spring exerted to cause closing of the gate is required to be increased or decreased the same can be accomplished by adjusting the rotative position of the pivot stud 23. The set screw 21 is first loosened and the pivot stud rotated in the desired direction, which in turn rotates the coil spring as the same has end 32 held by the stud. Tightening theset screw holds the pivot stud in adjusted position and the gate closer is again ready for use.

It will be observed'from the foregoing description of the drawing that with the coil spring in the position of Figure 2 the closer has application to gates which rotate clockwise in closing. The gate closer, however, is universal and can be suited to gates having closing movement in the opposite direction merely by reversing the position of the coil spring on the stud 23. In other 'words, the bent end 32 is associated with the upper collar 28, which results ina reversal in the association of the hooked end 33 with the gate frame. This position of the parts is shown in Figure 5. The operations necessary to reverse the parts do not require skilled labor in that the collars-coil spring and sleeve have only two positions of association and therefore it is impossible for anyone to remove the parts and replace them so that the closer would not function either in Also either collar 28 or 29 can form the upper collar and therefore extreme care is not required in the assembly of the parts,

It is to be understod that I do not wish to be limited by the exact embodiment of the device shown, which is merely by way of illustration and not limitation, as various and other forms of the device will of course be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. A gate closer comprising, in combination, a member for detachable seourement to the post supporting the gate, a stud projecting from the opposite sides of said member, means securing said stud in adjusted position of rotation, the upper end of said projecting stud providing a pintle for the gate, said lower end having a longitudinal slot and mounting resilient means having a portion located within said slot, washers mounted on the lower end of said stud and positioned to provide seats for the respective ends of the resilient means, and means holding the lowermost washer and therefore the resilient means on the stud, said resilient means having a laterally extending portion engaging said gate.

2. A gate closer comprising, in combination, a supporting member for detachable securement to a post, a pivot stud having ends projecting from opposite sides of said member, the upper end providing a pintle for said gate, said lower end having a longitudinal slot and mounting resilient means having a portion located within said slot, washers located on the lower end of said stud providing seats for the respective ends of the resilient means, a sleeve encircling the resilient means and confined between the washers, said resilient means having a laterally extending portion projecting through an opening in the sleeve and engaging with said gate, and means for adjusting the rotative position of said pivot stud to vary the tension of the resilient means.

NOAH HARTER. 

